In this episode, Priya strips the 401k back to first principles - what it actually is, how the employer match works, and when maxing it out might be the wrong call. The catalyst: a smart, well-educated client who went years without contributing because nobody ever explained what "match" meant. Priya fixes that, then goes further - covering the traditional vs. Roth decision, why flexibility beats tax optimization, and the one rule that is genuinely non-negotiable no matter what else is going on in your financial life.

Takeaways:

• A 401k is not an investment - it is a tax-advantaged container. The investments you put inside it are an entirely separate decision.
• Your employer match is the only guaranteed 100% return available to anyone.
• If you are in your 30s building toward near-term goals - a home, a career change, a sabbatical - maxing your 401k might actually mean over-allocating to retirement at the expense of everything else.
• Most people who try to perfectly optimize the traditional vs. Roth decision end up with regrets about optionality.

  
  

Follow Priya Malani:

LinkedIn | Instagram | Stash Wealth | YouTube

The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya asks the question most high earners don’t realize they are avoiding: are you actually wealthy, or have you built a very convincing appearance of it? Drawing on the timeless learnings in The Millionaire Next Door, she breaks down two types of high earners - prodigious accumulators of wealth and under-wealth accumulators - then runs the real math on what a completely normal lifestyle on $320K in New York City actually leaves behind to build with.

Takeaways:

• There is a version of success that looks like wealth, feels like wealth, and costs like wealth, but never actually becomes it.
• On a $320K salary in New York City, a normal lifestyle leaves roughly $25K a year to build with.
• Under-wealth accumulators don't feel broke - they just happen to be winning the wrong game.

Follow Priya Malani:

LinkedIn | Instagram | Stash Wealth | YouTube

The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya names what she calls the "HENRY version of money silence" - the isolating experience of earning a high income and still feeling anxious, behind, or quietly out of control. Drawing from almost 12 years of client conversations, she breaks down the three specific ways silence shows up at high incomes. This episode is a permission slip to stop pretending - and a roadmap for what to do instead.

Takeaways:

• There's an unspoken rule that at mid-six-figure incomes, you're not allowed to feel stressed about money.
• 40% of Americans in relationships can't accurately tell you their partner's income.
• Clients earning $350-400K often have no clear picture of what their household spends each month - not because they're irresponsible, but because looking felt scarier than not looking.

  
  

Follow Priya Malani:

LinkedIn | Instagram | Stash Wealth | YouTube

The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.